Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2024/iii/paper-336/1/c/solution

Write
The saddle equation is unchanged, so
The contour connected to the original positive-real integration path passes through . Since , its steepest-descent branch has
For and ,
Thus the contour equation is
It approaches the origin along the positive imaginary axis, passes through , , and tends to infinity along the positive real axis. Along both ends the real part of the phase tends to , so the contour rises from the origin nearly vertically, bends through the first-quadrant saddle, and leaves nearly horizontally. The other saddle lies on a different constant-imaginary-phase contour and does not connect to this deformation.

New to topics? Read the docs here!